Internet News

Friday, March 19, 2010

Radoff surfaces at Facebook game maker Disruptor Beam
GamerDNA co-founder Jon Radoff has dropped some hints on his blog about his latest endeavor, a social site gaming company called Disruptor Beam LLC, which he has been working on with his wife Angela Bull. The company is making games for sites like Facebook, according to online job postings.
MBTA ‘T-Alerts’ slapped with IP lawsuit
A European company has sued the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, alleging the MBTA has infringed its patents with its “T-Alerts” system, which broadcasts messages related to public transit service delays and its open approach to encouraging software developers to build applications based on its vehicle tracking systems.
Online gaming startup StarStreet ‘betting’ on loophole
First-time entrepreneur Jeremy Levine thinks he’s found a loophole that allows online betting on sporting events, and he’s using this year’s March Madness NCAA basketball tournament to roll the dice and see if his hunch pans out.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

UMassOnline brings Masson on as CTO
The University of Massachusetts reports it has hired Patrick Jay Masson as chief technology officer of its UMassOnline distance-learning division. Masson replaces outgoing CTO Brian Douglas, who is now associate vice president for budget and administration.
uLocate renames to Where
Boston location-based mobile search and recommendation company uLocate Communications Inc. has changed its name to that of its primary product. Going forward, the company now known as Where Inc. reports that its service will also be available on the web at Where.com.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Quick Hit scores distribution deal with IGN for football game
Social sports games developer Quick Hit Inc. has signed a distribution deal with the largest gaming site on the web, IGN, which will make the game available through its network of sites, including Direct2Drive, FilePlanet, AskMen and IGN.com.
Boston World Partnerships pumped 200 new jobs into city
Boston World Partnerships celebrated its one year anniversary last night at the Liberty Hotel, releasing data showing that it is responsible for creating 200 new jobs in Boston and retaining 115 jobs, resulting in an economic impact of $38 million in statewide spending.
Boston iPhone app, GIS Data Hub win tech awards
Mayor Tom Menino announced Tuesday that the Public Technology Institute (PTI) awarded the city of Boston with two technology awards — for its Citizens Connect iPhone application and its GIS Data Hub.
Towerstream buys WiMax assets in Chicago, Nashville
Towerstream Corp., a provider of fixed WiMax service for businesses, plans to pay $1.6 million in cash and common stock to buy certain assets of Sparkplug Communications Inc., giving Towerstream network infrastructure and customers in Chicago and Nashville, Tenn.
The Pitch: CustomMade Ventures matches woodworkers with custom projects
CustomMade Ventures runs CustomMade.com, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) website that woodworkers can use to sell their services and show off their wares. Now it is looking for an investment of $750,000 to $1 million to upgrade its site, hire employees and ramp up marketing.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Online trade site SwapTree pulls in $4.7M
SwapTree Inc. has raised $4.7 million, part of a planned $6 million equity financing round. Located in Boston, SwapTree publishes an online bartering service that lets users trade media, such as books, CDs and video games.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Conn. digital media startup pulls in $550,000 financing
Digital Brand Connections LLC, a Connecticut company founded earlier this year by former Clear Channel Communications Inc. executives, has raised a $550,000 angel round to build proprietary digital media players for well-known brands to stream rich media to their customers and fans.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Blue Fang Games counting on Facebook gamers
Blue Fang Games LLC, best known for the Zoo Tycoon franchise, has just released a Facebook game called Zoo Kingdom, making it the first traditional game development studio to port its intellectual property to a social site like Facebook.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Web startup RunMyErrand to move execs west
After winning West Coast VC cash and a spot in Facebook Inc.’s startup incubator program, RunMyErrand Inc. is moving its top three startup executives to a new office in San Francisco; but founder Leah Busque said the move may not be permanent.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Boston rated first among telecommuting cities
Boston is the top U.S. medium-sized or large city for telecommuting, according to a new survey of 3,600 workers in 36 markets. The survey was commissioned by Microsoft Corp. but performed by an outside market research company.
Springpad springs out of Charlestown startup to iPhone
Spring Partners Inc. has launched its first iPhone application, Springpad, which marks the Charlestown startup’s shift in how it both applies its technology and how it makes money from it.

Monday, March 8, 2010

World Wide Web Consortium names Jaffe CEO
Former Novell Inc. chief technology officer Jeffrey Jaffe has been named CEO of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). He will be responsible for directing W3C’s global operations, working with Tim Berners-Lee, director of W3C.

Friday, March 5, 2010

OurStage, MTV to shine light on new music
Chelmsford-based OurStage Inc. reports it has partnered with MTV Networks Co., with the startup providing its voting platform for emerging musical acts.
Boston, Somerville in hunt for high-speed Google Internet network
California's Google Inc. has created a new gold rush — not for the mineral resources of the Golden State, but for a limited number of planned super-high-speed Internet connections that would be 200 times faster than the average connection in the United States.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

The Echo Nest wins another $500K NSF grant
Somerville-based maker of “music intelligence” technology The Echo Nest Inc. has been awarded a $500,000 Phase 2B SBIR grant from the National Science Foundation to further develop the company’s technology to analyze music choices by fans.